WRITEN FOR 6.69

Mercurial - The Spectre - Advanced Guide




TABLE OF CONTENT


- AUTOR'S COMMENTS
- THE HERO
- PICK / DON'T PICK SPECTRE IF YOU..
- ADVANTAGES / DISADVANTAGES
- SKILLS
- SKILL BUILD
- ITEM BUILD
- REJECTED ITEMS
- COMBOS
- WORST ENEMIES
- CONCLUSION

English is not my native language. I'm sorry.

This is my first guide, but I hope it will work.


WHITE: Guide. GREEN: Autor's comments.

AUTOR COMMENTS

Searching a guide to play Spectre, right? If you don't played with this hero before, leave. Because this guide is a little hard, and you need good farming skill to reach the full potential of this hero.

I spended much time playing Spectre. I hope the guide will work.


THE HERO





Affiliation: Scourge
Attack Animation: 0.3 / 0.7
Damage: 46 - 50
Casting Animation: 0.3 / 0.51
Armor: 3.3
Base Attack Time: 1.7
Movespeed: 295
Missile Speed: Instant
Attack Range: 100 (melee)
Sight Range: 1800 / 800



Mercurial is able to Desolate opponents for pure damage if she catches them alone, and Disperses damage intake, reflecting it in the area around her. She can hurl a Spectral Dagger at opponents, which will slow and damage enemies, as well as allow Spectre to pass through material objects and travel across any terrain. She should be feared as a constant presence, being able to Haunt images of herself upon all enemy heroes from any distance, and even reform her actual self into any one of those images to physically enter a fight.



A darkness who was ancient even in the early days of the world's existence, Mercurial is the embodiment of rage and vengeance in the souls of those long dead. Haunting her enemies with relentless fervor, she is able to throw a dagger-like projectile that allows her to chase her prey beyond physical boundaries, and the fear and the desolation struck in the hearts of those who have the misfortune of encountering her alone is a pain impossible to withstand. Spectre's thirst for destruction is insatiable, and the upcoming struggle seems to be just what she was waiting for.

Spectre is an Hard Carry. I mean, he needs good items to be a powerful killing machine. You need a lot of last hitting skill to play with. If you've got killed more than 2 times in early game, is Game over.

Spectre is NOT the best hero in 1 vs 1. Sure, a Full Void and other carries can kill him. That's the truth. But.. Spectre OWNS in teamfights or 1 vs 5 with full items. Dota is not 1 vs 1, is TEAMPLAY. That's what makes him an excelent hero, capable of own an entire enemy team. If you understand this, Spectre can be the best Teamfighter Killer, not as the Single Killer heroes.

This is NOT a noob-friendly hero, because you need Map Awareness, farming ability and Group control (Haunt and Manta Images). You need skills to play Spectre.

The Role of this hero is Killer, just once with full items.


PICK SPECTRE IF YOU..

- Like to play hardcore carries
- Want to be the killer of your team
- Want to control the entire map
- Have a decent team that will support and protect you
- You like to tank and do mass damage at the same time


DON'T PICK SPECTRE IF YOU..

- Want to roam
- Want to support
- Don't have map awareness
- Want to play with an Item Independant hero
- Are newbie, and like to play with easy heroes like Sniper or Traxex
- Don't know how to farm well
- And the last.. NEVER, I repeat: NEVER pick Spectre, if your team is a bunch of newbies that just picks Killers and easy heroes that don't support the carry of the team.



ADVANTAGES

- Good escape mechanism (Dagger).
- Excelent global maphack (Haunt).
- Great damage when catching an enemy alone (Desolate).
- Agility hero, but can tank (Dispersion)
- Excelent chaser (Dagger, Haunt).
- Powerful late game killer with the right items.
- Team killer (Dispersion + Haunt).
- Aegis Stealer (Haunt FTW).
- Really fun to play! Not like other carries!


DISADVANTAGES

- Bad early game.
- Fragile, early and mid game.
- Average MS and AS.
- Item dependant.
- Hard to farm due to average attack power.
- Mana problems, early and mid game.
- Team dependant.


As we can see, Spectre is weak at the start, but if you farm, it changes.



SKILLS



Spectral Dagger



The Spectre launches a deadly dagger that trails a Shadow Path. Deals damage to the targets in its path. Units hit by the dagger will also trail a Shadow Path. The Spectre becomes phased (gains zero collision) while on the path.

The chasing skill for Mercurial. When it hits, Spectre gains extra MS, which can help him to follow his victim. It's a escape mechanism, too.



Desolate



Deals bonus damage that cuts through armor when attacking a hero that has no nearby allied units. Works on Illusions.

Works on ILLUSIONS?! Then, Manta is a must. This skill is excelent combined with it. Without items.. is okay, but with Manta.. be ready to rape all of their holes


Dispersion



Causes any damage taken by Mercurial to be reflected onto all enemies in a 1000 AoE.

Great skill in late game. It completely counters enemies with great attack power but low hp! You can kill an entire team with this passive. And you just receive 78% of the damage!


Haunt



Creates a haunting image beside each enemy hero. These images are uncontrollable, take 200% damage, deal 40% damage and each of them will attack only its pair. Haunting images have a 1 second delay before they become active.

This skill is the key of the power of Spectre. You can find jungling heroes or even a team roshaning. I repeat: IS THE KEY.


Reality



Target a location to replace the nearest Haunt Illusion immediately and end Haunt.


You replace one of the images, and the real Spectre appears. Warning, if you do this, the haunt images will dissapear. This is the real thing that fits Haunt.



SKILL BUILD


1- Spectral Dagger
2- Desolate
3- Dispersion
4- Spectral Dagger
5- Desolate
6- Haunt
7- Desolate
8- Spectral Dagger
9- Dispersion
10- Spectral Dagger
11- Haunt
12- Desolate
13 to 16- Maximize Dispersion
16- Haunt
16+- Atributte Bonus

Spectral Dagger is our 2st priority because of the damage nuke and the escape mechanism.

Desolate is our 3nd priority because of the bonus damage combined with Manta Style.

Dispersion is our 4th priority because it's better for late game.

Haunt is our 1st priority because of the chasing power and teleport when going to shop.


ITEM BUILD


Just for 5 vs 5.


WHEN STARTING:


OPTION 1:





- Quelling Blade
- 6 Tangas
- Circlet of Noobly


- Q: Why Quelling Blade?

A: For better last hitting. It's not just a jungle item.. it works in lane! (noob info) We know, you have a decent, but not high attack power.. then, why not buy this? Cheap, and useful.

- Q: Why Tangos?

A: Obvious. You need healing items before going to farm. Specially if your enemy is a harasser.

- Q: GG Branches are cheapest than Circlet of Nobility.

A: Yes, but we want to complete the 2 Bracers quick.


Good option if there's not much spell casters.


OPTION 2:







- Q: Why GG Branches?

A: We are going to make a Magic Wand.


Very good option if there's a lot of Spell Casters.


EARLY GAME:


IF CHOOSED OPTION 1 AT STARTING:






- Power Treads (Strength)
- 2 or 1 Bracers


- Q: Why Power Treads in Strength?

A: Keep reading.

- Q: You are an agility hero, why do you need bracers?

A: Survability. If the enemy team is smart, they will try to gank you. The bracers can save your ass. And you don't need Wraith Bands, because Spectre works in late game, so we must not focus on killing heroes in Early Game. BUT i don't mean that you must leave your team alone. When you can gank, try it. Maybe you can got a kill Oh and you don't need 2 Bracers, you can just bought one to farm the next item quick.



IF YOU CHOOSED OPTION 2 AT STARTING:





- Power Treads (Strength)
- Magic Wand


- Q: Why Magic Wand?

A: If you got ganked, sure they're going to throw spells, right? This can save your ass from a gank. It works better when the enemy team has a lot of INT Heroes or Spell Casters.




MID GAME:




- Radiance
- Manta Style
- Diffusal Blade


- Q: Radiance is very hard to farm! Maybe.. another item, and then this?

A: NO. I know, Radiance can be a NIGHTMARE to farm, but after buying it, your farming and killing ability.. will grow up A LOT! After Radiance, you can farm Manta Style in 7 or 6 minutes. If you get this, you can start killing heroes by activating Haunt and then Reality, because your Illusions have Radiance.

- Q: First Diffusal and then Manta, or first Manta and then Diffusal?

A: It's situational. Is your choise, depending of the game. Manta is better at teamfights because literally it doubles your damage, and Diffusal Blade is excelent at chasing enemies. Both items can be a nice combination. If there are jungling heroes, then Diffusal Blade is the best option. BUT, Manta is a must, before or after DB.


LATE GAME:




And maybe:

- Diffusal Blade
- Heart of Tarrasque
- SITUATIONAL: Blademail


- Q: Heart of Tarrasque on Spectre? WTF?

A: You have Dispersion! HoT is a must on Spectre, because you will be able to tank the damage, like a weak copy of Centaur.

- Q: Blademail? Why?

A: Use your imagination. The entire enemy team is roshaning. You use Haunt. They start attacking you, and you active Blademail FTW.



REJECTED ITEMS





Althrough is a good item and it maximizes your chasing ability, I don't suggest to get it. There's better items to spend your gold. I just recommend Yasha, not getting Sange.





It's a completely waste of slot and gold, because it ISN'T necesary on Spectre. Even if you want to help your team, you're not a supporting hero.





Don't get it. You don't need lifesteal, and you will get the AS with other items. Don't waste your gold in this. It's a good item for jungling, but Spectre is not a jungle hero.





NEVER get this item in any hero. It's expensive, and you drop this if you've got killed.. GG for your team .





My god.. NEVER get this. You just have the amount of MS needed to chase when you throw your dagger, and the damage bonus is pure s**t .





Yes, good AGI item, but we want to disperse the damage, not to evade it.





Good HP Regen, but you disperse less damage because of the spell resistance.



COMBOS


With full or half items, Spectre can do Combos (Combinations of Skills):


Combo 1: They're freaking scaring my team! Even the Illusions!

(Haunt + Wait 3 or 4 seconds + Reality + Spectral Dagger + Manta Style + Diffusal Blade)

Explanation: If you find someone jungling, he's DEAD. If you find the enemy team roshaning, they're all DEAD. If you catch one guy that is trying to escape, Diffusal Blade FTW)


Combo 2: What the F***, I used Ult on him and I missed?

(Manta Style)

Explanation: This is like a Puck's Phase Shift. When the enemy casts a spell, use Manta Style, and you will evade it. Last game, I evaded an Sven's Stun.
Why you evade it? While Manta is casting, you're like a god. You need reflexes to do this.


Combo 3: That f***ing spectre is Sonic, while I'm a snail!

(Spectral Dagger + Diffusal Blade)

Explanation: Spectral Dagger on the one who is running. Then, Diffusal Blade. Now, when you finish an attack, cancel the animation.


* UPDATING DEFENSIVE COMBOS *

* UPDATING GIFS *



WORST ENEMIES



Every hero has their counters.. even Spectre.





Tiny: 2 AoE skills. 1 Grow passive and 1 Stun passive. He can do a lot of damage in early game, and he can gank you a lot of times. And in Late game, you will lose in 1 vs 1 with him.

Axe: Axe is a counter just if the player is smart. In early game, he will kill your creeps, and if you get near to him, he will damage you, and probably kill you. And in Mid Game, when you get your manta, the more % you give to him to do more damage.

Centaur: Early Game is not a problem. Mid Game, it starts to be hard. Late Game, he returns a LOT of damage, and you hardly can kill him.

Sven: God's Strength + Great Cleave, you and your illusions are dead, even if you can evade the stun with Manta Style.

Enchantress: GOD! She's so imba! Untouchable makes her.. untouchable for you. And her wisps will heal her. I've never seen an Enchantress got killed in any pub.. I think. But the point is: Don't pick Spectre if there's an Enchantress in the enemy team.



CONCLUSION


Spectre is an hard carry, and with full items he is the best killer in teamfights. If they focus you, they are dead. If they don't focus you, they are dead.

Remember: Practice is the key. Sometimes, I lose too, but most of the times is thanks to my team.


AND MY LAST WORDS: As I say before, Spectre is ''team dependant''. Never pick Spectre if your friends just pick Killers or Late Game Carries. You NEED to be supported, and even a NH can save your ass from a gank.



Thanks for reading this guide. I'll update and improve it in some few days.


10/10/10: The guide is created.
12/10/10: Updated Item Build.